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Review: How I Lost You [+Giveaway]

How I Lost You
by Janet Gurtler
Published: TODAY! [ 4.30.13]
Pages: 320


There are a few things Grace Anderson knows for sure. One is that nothing will ever come between her and her best friend, Kya Kessler. They have a pact. Buds Before Studs. Sisters Before Misters. But in the summer before senior year, life throws out challenges they never expected. And suddenly the person who's always been there starts to need the favor returned. Grace and Kya are forced to question how much a best friend can forgive. And the answer is not what they expected.


Inky's Blurbings:

This book was not what I expected at all. For one, the deep dark depths of this past, surprised me, and the emotional drive of our narrative was wonderful! So, to start it off, Grace as a very compelling character. Her drive to protect her best friend was a very emotionally real connection. It is well based, it felt very real to me. I've got younger sisters, and so in a way I could very well relate to this 'Mama Bear' feeling. Grace isn't the most outgoing kind of character, but when she's set on something, she does it. She will stand up for herself and people she protects. She's emotionally empowering.



I don't know where to go with Kya. She's obviously a very opposite kind of a girl from Grace. She's had an incredibly hard past and it's almost as hard to watch her messed up self as it seems for Grace to experience it. But for the most part I liked her. She had an honesty about her, despite her secrets and issues. I liked that.  As for the additional cast, I enjoyed them. James had the role of light comic relief, with a mild sarcasm that made me smile. Levi, was a lovely character, not only as a romantic interest, but as a friend to Grace. From the beginning I loved his calmer approach to things and very real feeling we got from him that he wasn't just a boy looking for more girls to play with. He's a well-rounded character.



Janet's writing is beautiful. It tells and connects the story in a way that just brings it to life, and makes it easy to connect with the story she is telling. It's a hard story to tell, but the emotions are well played in this book, that it's wonderful. On a geeky side note, loved the Paintball in this book! I think it's a fabulous hobby/trait, and don't understand why most YA books have them! So, I enjoyed this book. If you are a fan of emotional, somewhat hard to deal with subjects, contemporary. Then I would say that this refreshing read is the one for you!



Content: Moderate

[Language scattered through, including a few W-words. Some scenes of teen drunkenness, innuendo, etc..]

4.5 Stars


So what are your thoughts on this/Janet's books? Are you interested in reading some? Yay? Nay? Do you love her books! Let me know in the comments!




About Janet


Janet lives near the Canadian Rockies with her husband and son and a little dog named Bruce. She does not live in an Igloo or play hockey, but she does love maple syrup and says “eh” a lot. Janet only gives 5 stars to the books she reviews because she is an author herself and knows that no book can appeal to everyone, but like a child, it is very special to the creator. I'M NOT HER was published by Sourcebooks Teen Fire in May 2011. IF I TELL released Oct 1, 2011 from Sourcebooks Teen Fire. WHO I KISSED Sourcebooks Fire 2012. Janet's work will also appear in the THE FIRST TIME anthology, DEAR TEEN ME anthology and WHO DONE IT anthology.


And since this is a part of  a tour...may I present the prettyliscious banner?!




And finally, the moment of truth, the book review? Or the giveaway. As of write now the Giveaway has won! Here's the awesome prizes up for grabs! Hurry and enter!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

That's all for Inkinator today! Thanks a million to Jean Book Nerd for the blog tour! Happy Tuesdays ya'll!!





Guest Post: Katie Sise + Giveaway

Welcome to Book Haven! I've got an awesome author on the blog to share an awesome guest post with ya'll! Katie Sise, author of the Boyfriend App is dropping by to share some snazzy author insight! Plus, don't miss the epic giveaway! First, here's a little about her book!







The Boyfriend App

Published: April 30.13

Pages: 320



In The Boyfriend App by Katie Sise, super-smart, somewhat geeky Audrey McCarthy can’t wait to get out of high school. Her father’s death and the transformation of her one-time BFF, Blake Dawkins, into her worst nightmare have her longing for the new start college will bring.


But college takes money. So Audrey decides she has to win the competition for the best app designed by a high schooler—and the $200,000 that comes with it. She develops something she calls the Boyfriend App, and suddenly she’s the talk of the school and getting kissed by the hottest boys around. But can the Boyfriend App bring Audrey true love?
Now, are you ready for her awesome thoughts? I am! Here we gooooo!



Hi Inky! I’m so excited to be a part of your blog. Thank you for having me! I’ve been doing so many interviews on THE BOYFRIEND APP, and I was thinking we could switch it up and talk about creative work in a more general way. 



I know a lot of blog readers are writers, too, and I thought I could talk about what I’ve learned about creative work and how to keep motivated. These are tips for busting through writer’s block (or any kind of creative block) that I wrote about in my first nonfiction book, CREATIVE GIRL: TheUltimate Guide for Turning Talent and Creativity into a Real Career. I  applied them while writing THE BOYFRIEND APP!





1) Take it Piece By Piece
When you break down large creative tasks into teeny tiny manageable ones, your work won’t seem as daunting. (Even when faced with the task of writing an entire novel!) There’s a great E.L. Doctorow quote about writing that’s applicable to all sorts of creative work. “Writing a book is like driving at night with the headlights. You can only see what’s directly in front of you, but you can make the whole trip that way.”


2) The Ten-Minute Rule
The next time you find yourself procrastinating, tell yourself you’ll work on the task you’ve been avoiding for just ten minutes. This little trick works for two reasons: First, almost anyone can do almost anything for ten minutes. You’ll often find that once you get started, the task isn’t so bad after all, and you’ll find yourself continuing your work past the allotted time. The second reason is the more significant of the two; starting a task is almost always the hardest part, so by continually doing this, you’re training yourself to get good at simply starting. Within a few weeks, it will become routine.


3) Enlist a Fellow Creative Type
If your creative work becomes too solitary, grab a workmate. Having a partner in crime to collaborate with and answer to will automatically make you more accountable. Anyone you know who is also responsible for scheduling her own creative time may want to partner up at a table in your local coffee shop on weekday afternoons. The moral support will keep you buoyed when you’re tempted to ditch your creative work and watch soap operas.


4) Get Out of the House
If the home office is driving you batty, change your scenery. This can be as simple as a midday break for the gym. Sometimes, just going to grab coffee first thing in the morning—which involves getting out of your pajamas, usually—can set you in the right frame of mind for work. There are creative, social work environments found at www.workatjelly.com.



5) Keep to a Schedule and Protect Your Work Hours

Pay attention to when you feel the most energetic during the day and schedule your toughest work for those hours. Become protective of those hours. Turn off the internet—it’s a black hole for productivity. Don’t answer the phone calls you don’t urgently need to take. If your writing time is during a certain time each day, you can even ask the people you love (and are tempted to talk to) not to call for those few hours each day. Catch up later!


6) Volunteer: Get Out of Your Head and Put Your Creative Plight in Perspective
It’s pretty hard to lose sight of what’s important in life when you make what’s important in life part of your life. There’s a creative side effect, too. Every time you switch up your surroundings, you creativity is stimulated. So leave your ego at the door and get out there and volunteer. There’s no better way in the world to remind yourself that it’s only a book, only a show, only a job, than to help people in need.
Bonus points if you can use your creativity while volunteering. Mentoring someone who benefits from your gifts reminds you of the innate goodness of your artistic pursuit.



The drive to volunteer inspired main character’s Aidan and Nigit’s app: PhilanthrApp in THE BOYFRIEND APP. Check out www.volunteermatch.org to find service work in your area.


**************************************


About Katie!

Katie Sise is the author of the YA debut chick flick, The Boyfriend App. Besides dipping her toes in writing, she is a professional jewelry designer, who's designs have been worn by plenty of celebs. She's also done work on TV and appeared on shows like HSN and Discovery Channel. She is also the author of the non-fiction book, CREATIVE GIRL. To learn more about her, visit her WEBSITE! 
And now we've got an awesome giveaway for you! Katie has been so generous to donate a copy of her book, along with some jewelry that corresponds with the book! You don't want to miss out on this! Giveaway ends. May 11th. Book prize open to INT and US. Jewelry will only be shipped to US winner.

a Rafflecopter giveaway So that's it for today! Have an awesome Monday! And don't forget to check out Katie's awesome book!   My review will be coming later this week! XOXO,





Book Haul: Three Month Round-up!


BookHaulingYes. I has been over three months since my last book haul. Yes I apologize. Yes I blame my crazy life. Yes I have a crazy amount of books to show you. YES I HAVE THREE VLOGS! Yes, you may now watch them.
















E-Haul: [not vlogged--linked to Goodreads]




Wake (Watersong, #1)

Lullaby (Watersong, #2)

Croak (Croak, #1)

The Crown of Embers (Fire and Thorns, #2)

Wake (Watersong, #1)

Lullaby (Watersong, #2)

Croak (Croak, #1)

The Crown of Embers (Fire and Thorns, #2)

Wake (Watersong, #1)

Lullaby (Watersong, #2)

Croak (Croak, #1)

The Crown of Embers (Fire and Thorns, #2)

Wake (Watersong, #1)

Lullaby (Watersong, #2)

Croak (Croak, #1)

The Crown of Embers (Fire and Thorns, #2)

Wake (Watersong, #1) Croak (Croak, #1)

The Crown of Embers (Fire and Thorns, #2)

Wake (Watersong, #1)

Lullaby (Watersong, #2)

Croak (Croak, #1)

The Crown of Embers (Fire and Thorns, #2)

Wake (Watersong, #1) Croak (Croak, #1)

The Crown of Embers (Fire and Thorns, #2) Wake (Watersong, #1) 

Lullaby (Watersong, #2)

Croak (Croak, #1)

The Crown of Embers (Fire and Thorns, #2)

Wake (Watersong, #1)

Lullaby (Watersong, #2)

Croak (Croak, #1)

The Crown of Embers (Fire and Thorns, #2)

Breathe (Breathe, #1)

Deity (Covenant, #3)

The Lost Prince (The Iron Fey: Call of the Forgotten, #1)

Wake (Watersong, #1)

Lullaby (Watersong, #2)

Croak (Croak, #1)

The Crown of Embers (Fire and Thorns, #2)

Such a Rush

Such a Rush

Such a Rush

Such a Rush

Such a Rush

Such a Rush

Such a Rush

Su.ch a RushSuch a Rush

Such a Rush

Such a Rush



NOTICE: Because of the enormity of the haul, I have decided that I will not spend the rest of my life linking all the books up to Goodreads. But the e-haul pictures ARE linked. Unfortunatley if you want easy access to the physical books, you're choice is to find it on Goodreads yourself. Sorry! But, next time I have a fairly normal haul, I'll totally link it up!! =]



Thanks to ALL the amazing people that shared and gifted their books with me! More people than I can thank! But here's an attempt: Harper Teen, Kensington Teen, Harlequin, Flux,  Hyperion, Entangled, Soho Teen, Annabelle, Jessi, Epic Reads, Bethany Wiggins, Atria Books, Kathy, Eileen, Sourcebooks, Emily, McKenna, Amber, Lindsay Ribar, Jaiden, Jen, Jennifer Echols, Simon & Schuster, R. E. Palmer, Penguin, Lili, Gina Rosati/Jean Book Nerd, Fierce Reads, and the library!



*sucks in huge breath* Well that's seriously a lot. My head hurts thinking about it. But I'm glad to have it finished. Thoughts? What did you get?! I'd love to see! Please link me up!! XOXO,